Oxbow Western Timothy Hay Small Animal Food

I've noticed that when I purchase smaller size bags of OXBOW TIMOTHY HAY, all I get in the bags are VERY HARD REED-LIKE STALKS!!! When I purchased a 50lb. box of the same hay from the same company, I received a VERY HIGH QUALITY of hay, mostly the blades of grass or hay. I don't think that's fair, just because I chose to order a smaller amount I get a lower quality. TWO 9 lb bags. Sometimes I'm not able to purchase a 50 lb box, but that shouldn't be a reason to be given a lower quality like this!!!! I know that it's NOT CHEWY.COM's fault that this happens. But, could you please forward this email to OXBOW.I'm going to spend my day PEELING AWAY the pieces of hay from the REED-LIKE STALKS I've noticed that when I purchase smaller size bags of OXBOW TIMOTHY HAY, all I get in the bags are VERY HARD REED-LIKE STALKS!!! When I purchased a 50lb. box of the same hay from the same company, I received a VERY HIGH QUALITY of hay, mostly the blades of grass or hay. I don't think that's fair, just because I chose to order a smaller amount I get a lower quality. TWO 9 lb bags. Sometimes I'm not able to purchase a 50 lb box, but that shouldn't be a reason to be given a lower quality like this!!!! I know that it's NOT CHEWY.COM's fault that this happens. But, could you please forward this email to OXBOW.I'm going to spend my day PEELING AWAY the pieces of hay from the REED-LIKE STALKS, so that my Guinea Pigs can have hay to eat!!! I only gave it 1 star because a rating was required!!! … more

I have been ordering oxbow hay for quite some time now. It was told to me that it is the best hay to buy and for a while it was. Wonderful soft aromatic green fresh hay. Not anymore. Box after box I get is dry brittle course hay all full of stalks. All I can compare it to is like unbroken spaghetti strands. All entwined together you cannot even pull it apart. My rabbits and Guinea Pig have to dig through the pile to get to the good bits, then in the morning I am throwing away a pile of course dry stalks that are left. I must throw away half the 50 lb box. I keep ordering hoping one day it goes back to the way it was as at this time I cannot find a hay better. Chewy service is wonderful but I have been ordering oxbow hay for quite some time now. It was told to me that it is the best hay to buy and for a while it was. Wonderful soft aromatic green fresh hay. Not anymore. Box after box I get is dry brittle course hay all full of stalks. All I can compare it to is like unbroken spaghetti strands. All entwined together you cannot even pull it apart. My rabbits and Guinea Pig have to dig through the pile to get to the good bits, then in the morning I am throwing away a pile of course dry stalks that are left. I must throw away half the 50 lb box. I keep ordering hoping one day it goes back to the way it was as at this time I cannot find a hay better. Chewy service is wonderful but there has to be some other better more consistent hay they can sell. Hay is 80% of their diets, I NEED GOOD HAY!!! It is not a treat, this is for their health. Oxbow what is going on with your product??? … more

I have ordered the smaller bag, 9 lb and most recently the 50 lb box (months ago now, just getting to reviews). I am pretty disappointed in the straw like grasses that came in the box. They are hard, very dry and pretty much is like Oxbow's cheaper competitors. Since this big box, I have had to go into stores to pick to make sure I am getting a good mix of soft and a bit harder. Ive been using this huge box more of a bedding and my guinea pigs do have fun throwing it and scattering it around (I think they are looking for good pieces to eat) I know I am just going to end up throwing most of this box away. I will also be conscious about ordering hay online in bigger qty. This issue is not I have ordered the smaller bag, 9 lb and most recently the 50 lb box (months ago now, just getting to reviews). I am pretty disappointed in the straw like grasses that came in the box. They are hard, very dry and pretty much is like Oxbow's cheaper competitors. Since this big box, I have had to go into stores to pick to make sure I am getting a good mix of soft and a bit harder. Ive been using this huge box more of a bedding and my guinea pigs do have fun throwing it and scattering it around (I think they are looking for good pieces to eat) I know I am just going to end up throwing most of this box away. I will also be conscious about ordering hay online in bigger qty. This issue is not a Chew Issue but an Oxbow issue. This straw should've been sent to the horse hay store! OH! and make sure you have room to store the hay in a cool dry place so it lasts! … more

Before ordering this I saw several negative reviews regarding the quality of this hay but decided to take the chance on it. While it definitely has more tops and seems not quite as uniform as smaller bags I have purchased before my rabbit does not seem to care in the least, and is happy to eat all of it. Will definitely buy again, assuming my rabbit outlast this massive box of hay.

I have been purchasing Oxbow for several years, and the most recent batch I received (9lb-bag) was terrible, very unlike Oxbow. The hay was greenish brown and had the texture of Easter grass, with almost no seedheads (which my bunny loves). I was concerned enough about the quality that I went to a local petstore to buy another brand/batch. Totally unlike Oxbow. I'll be trying another brand next time I order.

I've been through many brands of Timothy Hay. The hay is usually too brittle, dry, or brown and I end up throwing away over half of it because my guinea pigs just don't like it. However, this brand seems to be a lot softer and my guinea pigs eat it up. The only draw back is that the 40 and 90 oz bags seem to have a good bit of hay dust once you get down to the last quarter of the bag.

I decided to buy the 50 pound box this time instead of the bags. My girls will eat it so thats a plus because they won't eat other brands of hay. They do seem to prefer Oxbow. With that said, I'm going through more hay than previously because there are more of the hard woody stalk pieces than there have been in the bags. I do see more seedheads than in the bags so I guess it is a matter of your animals preference. I'd have to say that the box is more economical for us even though I throw away more because there is just so much of it. I kept the last large Oxbow bag so I keep refilling that and put the rest in large tote bins. I think I will keep buying the 50 pound box in the future.

I really like Oxbow, other brands are too dusty for guinea pig who has allergies. I was excited to receive my 9-pound bag but it was POKEY, almost like straw. Usually it's a lot softer. I'll buy orchard hay next time. And it was a bit dustier than usual but didn't cause her to sneeze like the other brands do so that's good!

This is the first (and last) time I am buying this kind, and potentially any kind, of hay from Chewy. I wanted to buy a bigger bag to last longer but when I opened it the first thing I noticed was that the hay didn't smell like the fresh Timothy hay usually does in every bag I bought. The quality of the hay is awful, it's way too soft and grassy to be eaten and would better off being used as nesting material. My chinchillas did NOT like the hay and for the most part left their hay bin full. I do not recommend this hay to anyone. It's a shame I ended up throwing the majority of it away.

On the recommendation of my bunny’s vet, I purchased this hay twice earlier this year. It was heavenly : supple, soft and sweet-smelling. My bunny loved every strand of it. But this latest order delivered in mid-July is a disgrace. It is green but exceedingly dry and sharp. It feels more like dry straw than hay. Naturally, my bunny won’t touch it. Thankfully, I still have some old hay left from previous orders to feed my bunny with. When that runs out, I hope hay quality would improve by then so my bunny will not starve.